


Meteors

by jonghotz



Series: a lifetime [1]
Category: ATEEZ (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Small Town, Dyslexia, Friendship, M/M, Non-Chronological, References to Depression, Self-Esteem Issues, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-26
Updated: 2019-09-02
Packaged: 2020-02-04 16:16:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 2,679
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18608065
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jonghotz/pseuds/jonghotz
Summary: "You will be there, right?" Wooyoung asked, almost in a whisper. "With me. Will you?""You know I will, Woo."





	1. Meteors

"Are you excited about school?" San asked as he seated down next to Wooyoung on the blanket he brought.

"What do you think?" Wooyoung said back, already on his back. Sarcastic.

"Yeah, you right." He wasn't really triggered himself, but he knew that he suffered way less than Wooyoung about school.

His best friend found it difficult, every day, to pay attention to something he couldn't understand really well. Wooyoung was dyslexic, and they found out when he was fourteen years old, which means it was hard to change anything now, they could just help him, founding some techniques that will make the task less difficult. Wooyoung was smart, that they knew, he just wish the world would make it more easier for him.

"But we getting into Junior year, so we can do more things" San tried to stay positive still. He knew how much anxiety his friend was suffering right now.

"This is the hardest year they say, if we can deal with this, we are going to survive everything." There was some hope on his voice, and for that San was really glad. "How long till the shower starts?"

If the change of direction on the conversation was too fast, San didn't want to mention it. He didn't want to stress Wooyoung any further, he didn't want to keep talking about it if his friend himself, the protagonist of the story, didn't want to.

"It should start any moment now." San looked up to the sky.

They were on a hill close to their town. San have driven them here. Another thing about Wooyoung's dyslexia was that he couldn't drive, scared that his brain would fail him on something as dangerous. San, instead, was sure he could do it. Yes, sometimes he failed to get right and left correctly, and sometimes he would stumble, not getting his balance correctly, but that was because he wasn't paying attention. If he concentrated enough, he could do whatever he wanted to. Sometimes Wooyoung was too hard on himself.

"Look!" His friend screamed, making San look at him instead of the sky, where he was pointing at. But Wooyoung didn't seem to notice, too fascinated with the stars to even put an eye on him. "Sani, look!" And he beamed that smile, so pure. "I didn't think there would be this many!"

San's heart shrink two sizes smaller when Wooyoung look back at him. He moved his head fast, so fast he was glad he didn't get a whiplash.

"Yes, you can see them better here on the countryside without all the city light's pollution." He smiled too, but he knew there was no way his smile could compete with Wooyoung's.

They stay quiet for a while. Until the meteor shower was almost done.

"You will be there, right?" Wooyoung asked, almost in a whisper. "With me. Will you?"

"You know I will, Woo."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!  
> My twitter is @jonghotz if you want to comment anything there, my DMs are always open.


	2. Woods

"Over there!" Wooyoung screamed next to San, excited about the river, as if it was his first time watching it.

It was not. It was the river next to their town, the one they have been visiting since they were probably babies. Every summer they would come, camp in the woods and have a bath in the rivers. This summer was not different, only this time, they came alone, just their friends, at least some of them, no one from their families.

"I love the river." Wooyoung murmured to himself.

"Same." San simply answered, not paying much attention to the water like Wooyoung did, but to their surroundings. He always worried, even when he knew that the woods were safe, he was still scared something would jump at them.

That was his character, the worried one, with his family, his friends. It was on his nature.

"Sani! Come!" Wooyoung called him from where he was, knees deep on the river already.

But especially with Wooyoung, because Wooyoung was especial. To him and to everyone who was blessed to be surrounded by him. Only if he knew.

"Did you take off your shoes?" San asked, looking around and not seeing them anywhere.

"On my hands." The other boy said moving them around with a smile, still so big on his face.

"Watch the fishes." He said. "They might bite you."

"There are no fishes here." Wooyoung said, tongue out, teeth showing so brightly with the sunlight.

"Of course there are fishes, Woo." San said laughing.

"I can't see any." Disbelieve on his face, a small pout on his lips.

"There." San said pointing. "On your left." 

He did forgot sometimes. Both of them.

"Your other left." He said laughing.

Wooyoung looked up, a deadly glare on his face, not least playful, thought.

"But that's a small fish!" His voice was loud, as usual, so loud it scared the fish away.

"I'm hungry, let's go. They must have done something to eat. We will come back this evening."

As a young child, Wooyoung pouted, walking out of the river, trying not to fall.

San didn't try to help him, he knew how much Wooyoung hated that, he knew how much he liked to do things alone, that must he knew. If he was in need of help, he would ask, that also he learned.

"Now you are gonna wet your shoes." San said, loud sigh after.

"Didn't thought about that." Pout still.

There were people next to the fire, but not many, it was too hot for that.

"You are back!" Seonghwa said with a smile. "There is some meat cooked, if you guys want to eat."

"I'm starving." Was all San said before sitting next to him. Eyes on the fire in front of him while he eated the piece of meat the elder gave him.

Wooyoung was somewhere he didn't get to see.

"How is your mom?" Seonghwa suddenly asked, taking San out of his trance.

"Better." Was all he could say.

"That's nice."

_ And also a lie. _ But he didn't want to worry the eldest. His family was not Seonghwa's problem. All of them had enough of those already.

The thing with his mother was that she hadn't show an improvement in months. Even his father seems to be giving up on her lately. Things at home were hard.

"Sani!" Wooyoung called from somewhere behind him. He turned around fast, as he always did, worried the other boy might had hurt himself.

"What?" He screamed back. Standing up almost at the second, ready to run if it was necessary.

"Is there any meat for me?" The slightly youngest boy was emerging from the woods next to Mingi. That smile on his face.

"Yes." Seonghwa was the one who asked. Taking some meat and bread to give it to Wooyoung.

San just stood there.

"He is not five years." The elder commented while also standing up.

Wooyoung took a seat right in front of him, eating happily.

"I know."  _ Just that sometimes I forgot because the urge of protecting him is too strong. _  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!  
> My twitter is @jonghotz if you want to comment anything there, my DMs are always open.


	3. Neon

It was past midnight when they decided to go home. After dropping Mingi on his house there was only them two.

"I don't wanna go home." Wooyoung said. Voice a little tired.

"What do you wanna do instead?" San asking while taking them out of Mingi's dubious neighbourhood.

"Can you just drive?" He was now looking at San, eyes so fixed on him their warn reached the boy on the driver seat.

"Okay."

Wooyoung never needed to instigate San too much to make him do whatever he wanted. Wooyoung knew San had this soft spot for him, and God did he take advantage of it.

San didn't care much about it, never did. He just focused on the road in front of him, heading out of the civilization, into the woods again.

"Sani, how is your mom?"

That was something he didn't want to talk about.

"Better." He said again. His default answer to that question.

"Really?" Wooyoung knew him, better than nobody, of course he would know he was lying.

"Yes." But he tried it again. Because San didn't want to talk about it, not now.

His mother have been sick for as long as he could remember.

When he was younger he didn't understand why there were times in which his mother loved him and took the best care of him to then hide on her room, not wanting to see him, not his father, not even his grandmother. Depression.

It took him a long time to understand what that meant. Now he knew, he also tried his best to help, but it was hard. She went into one of her episodes almost a year ago, the longest one San could remember. And no amount of therapy and pills seems to take her out of it. His father and grandmother were feeling powerless, and San himself didn't want to admit it, but he was losing hope.

"You know you can talk to me about anything, right?" Wooyoung said after a long silence. They were almost at the intersection that joined their town's road with the highway.

He stopped the car.

"She haven't went out of her room in a month, she don't want to go to the therapy appointments. We don't know what to do." San finally said, looking at the wheel of his car.

"I'm sorry, Sani. So sorry." And he knew Wooyoung was.

Outside of their family Wooyoung was the one who probably hurted the most with the situation of his mother, because he get to spend to long with San they almost shared their emotions.

"Not your fault."

"It all will get better. I know. For your mother, and you, and your father and your grandma, you will see." San wanted to believe him, so bad, and it was so easy with a smile like that.

"We should go back. It's late." He turned around with the car.

While driving Wooyoung back home he saw the neon light of the betting house of their town and the pub next to it. It was almost 2 PM.


	4. Fire

They didn't sleep in the woods that many nights. One, because some of their parents didn't let them and two, because Hongjoong keep on reminding them how dangerous it was. _Wolves and bears, guys. Wolves and bears._ He keep on repeating. But sometimes they did, for Jongo mainly, when things were too bad at home and he couldn't bare with it, those nights they knew he needed to feel free.

So they would all gather with their pickups, only Seonghwa and Yeosang had one, but if that made Hongjoong feel safer, then they will make it for him.

The fire was a must.  _ It keeps the beasts away. _ Yunho reminded them, so they and some of their younger brothers, to keep Yechan company, sit around it. Mingi was in front of him, playing with a stick in fire, Hongjoong freaking out somewhere. Family. That's what they are, a family. A fucked up one with many many problems, but a family.  _ Always there for each other _ , San likes to remind them.

"I feel like we spent more time on the woods than at our houses." Wooyoung said as he seated next to him in one of the beach chairs they bought. He get there not even half an hour ago, having to take care of his mother that evening. He told his father, over and over again that he didn't need to go, that he could stay, that he and his grandmother should rest.  _ It's summer. _ His father reminded him, and shooed him away.

"You surely do." He answered smiling. Wooyoung didn't like being at home. He had a nice relationship with his parents, but he didn't like being in closed places. That's why they were always on the road, running away from their problems for a while. It worked for Wooyoung, but not for San. What worked for San was being with Wooyoung, having him by his side, close to him.

"How is she?" Wooyoung asked in a low voice.

As always, San didn't knew how to answer that, because the answer was 'same as always', but that would mean way more questions, and more sad and worried looks he did not need, not want.

His mother was sick, terminally sick, pills and therapy can help, but her brain was damaged, forever. She was always under the shade of this cloud that could let some rain fall over her or let some sunlight shine over her from time to time.

Looking at the fire was making his eyes get some tears. No, he didn't want to cry, there was no need for him to.

"Okay." Was his final decision. Wooyoung smiled, probably understanding that this time San really meant it. Because San knew his mother get out of her bed today to get a shower by herself.

"I could get us a place on the back of Seonghwa's van." His teeth were shining brightly, and that was a sight San could cry to.

"Awesome!" They didn't need to sleep on the floor, away from the strong smell of the wood burning, but that also meant they will probably get cold at some point in the night because there weren't enough sleeping bags for all of them and they could only use a few blankets. But that's okay, as long as Wooyoung is by his side.


	5. Fire

San did cry at some point that night because of the fire, that's what he wanted his mind to believe, at least. What he made himself believe.

He did not want to ruin the mood for everyone, choosing on keeping on a smile for a while, until most of them were asleep. After that he could let himself go, probably get into his car, and let himself cry.

He wanted to, cry, so bad, for so long. This past days he have been taking care of his mother have been hard. Seeing her on her lowest was never a good sight. She wasn't even a shadow of what she used to be when she had those days.

But no, he didn't want to cry right now. He knew everyone sitting on this logs around the fire right now had their own problems. He also knew they would not hesitate helping him if San asked for their it. But he felt like that was too much. He already bothered Wooyoung too much to bother everyone else with the same thing once and once again. And it wasn't like they could take care of his problem, or even offer a little help.

"Sani." Wooyoung got him out of his trance. Making him blink, tears rolling out of his eyes on a incredible fast pace.

San looked around fast, trying to find if his friends where looking. They were, even if they were trying to avoid his sight.

Summer was supposed to be the happiest season of the year, yet he couldn't bring himself to enjoy nit even a very little of it by far. San didn't even want to think about when the cold came. Things were always harder in the cold.

Wooyoung got rid on his tears, a small smile on his face. "Wanna lay down? You must be tired." He softly said.

"What? No, I'm okay, Woo. Don't worry." And Wooyoung pouted.

"Okay." He said looking down. "I was hoping to sleep already. We have been the whole day here. I'm kinda tired."

San didn't knew nor could he guess until which extent that was a lie. Yet he decided to go with it no matter what.

"Okay. Let's go." He could use some sleep.

"Nice." And Wooyoung looked somehow relieved. Going straight to Seonghwa's pickup and getting a very thick blanket from the back seat. "I brought the nice blanket." His smile was probably bigger than his face.

They both climbed on the pickup. Laying down the closer they could to let the most space possible for the other boys.

"Tomorrow everything will be better." Wooyoung murmured. And San closed his eyes, choosing to believe him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oooh! is the halfway of the fanfic already! better things are coming, dont worry!
> 
> ne ways, my tw is @jonghotz if you guys wanna hit me there, and also i have a cc with the same @
> 
> ly!💕

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!  
> My twitter is @jonghotz if you want to comment anything there, my DMs are always open.


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